Fall of Heaven
by Noah Gabriel
Summary: An end to evil, no matter what name it hides behind. An end to revenge, no matter whose grave I must dig. I'll drag you off your throne and show you hell. Welcome to my red world. (Story contains blood and swearing. Takes place after timeskip. R&R Enjoy!)
1. Chapter 1 - From Hell With Love

**Author's Note: Wahoo! After four years my next One Piece fic begins! Time sure flies, huh? The next chapter will probably take some time to come out since I have real world problems to deal with, but it shouldn't be too long. Till then enjoy the first chapter!**

* * *

**Chapter 1 - From Hell With Love**

* * *

The dark sky overhead reflected the red tint of flames upon the ocean surface, a lone ship broken apart and burning in the crimson flames. Floating by the ship was a black flag featuring a skull and crossbones, torn greatly by an unseen battle. As the flames crackled and spat sparks, the waters around the ship gleamed a sinister red. A battle cry suddenly shattered the stillness as the captain of the burning ship aimed their fist towards a hooded figure standing upon the ship's figurehead.

Then all was quiet again, the only sounds heard being the crackling fire and the steady drip of blood into the sea. The ship's figurehead creaked and snapped off into the water, its features burnt away. The hooded figure that once stood upon it now stood on the red ocean surface, despite nothing between their feet and the bloody water.

In the figure's gloved hand were several posters clenched together. The figure raised the posters and let them be blown away by the wind. The faces on the posters were crossed out with what seemed to be blood. The hooded figure placed both of their hands to the hem of the hood and pulled it down silently.

"An end to evil," the figure murmured as her blood red hair blew in the wind.

The girl gazed upon the wreckage with glass-like eyes that reflected the bright flames. Her face showed no emotion as she turned her head away from the sight and began to walk away. On her coat's back, lit by the flames were the initials "EX3".

"Ragnarok Pirates exterminated."

* * *

_**Holy Land Mariejois, Red Line**_

The Gorosei were silent as they stared at the stack of papers piled on the small table in front of them. The papers included wanted posters as well as various forms for them to sign.

"Sixty-seven pirate captains, eighteen Vice Admirals, and seventy-two members of royalty... all slain in a single week," one of the Gorosei spoke gravely, he gripped the top of his cane tightly. The other four remained silent, their eyes fixed to the paper on the top of the pile. The Gorosei member that held a sword let out a low breath.

"It's been four years since they were last seen, and they've already taken out this many..." he said quietly before he mouthed a silent prayer afterwards. The blond Gorosei leaned back and folded his hands together before he spoke.

"Counting the pirates alone, all of them were great threats to us. The reward for such a feat would be no less than ten billion Beri and possibly a high rank in the Government. But considering who is responsible, such a reward would never happen."

The other Gorosei nodded in agreement before the one with a cane picked up the top paper of the pile to get a good look at the photo on it. The photo showed two kings strung up on crosses, each with several swords impaled into them and the words "Blade for Slave" carved into their chests.

"There is no doubt it's their work. They must have returned because of what happened at Marineford two years ago. We cannot let them get away this time or we risk the safety of the lords living here. Send word to Fleet Admiral Akainu that another war may come."

* * *

_**Island of Festivals Haname, New World**_

"Oi, Luffy! Turn! TURN!" Usopp cried out loudly but was roughly bumped backwards by Luffy who had a grin stretched across his face. Usopp groaned and then was bumped again from behind by Chopper this time.

"This is fun!" the little reindeer cried out happily, as he started spinning the wheel of his bumper car to turn it. Usopp murmured something about unfairness but was cut off as Brooke sped by, barely missing Usopp's car.

"How do I turn?" Brooke asked nonchalantly as he hit the wall and stared straight ahead despite not having eyes. Over in the far corner, Franky was trying to fit himself into a bumper car as well, but his large frame was keeping him from steering properly. Luffy laughed as he and Chopper whizzed around without a care until they slammed into each other head on.

"Geez how is that fun?" Nami asked with a sigh as she and Robin watched from outside the ride. Robin smiled and quietly helped Chopper right himself with a hand bloomed from the back of his seat.

"Shall we go find something for us to do then?" Robin offered. Nami ran her fingers through her hair with a small smile.

"Might as well see if there's any nice clothes around," she said softly and waved to the boys before she walked off with Robin. Behind them at the shooting booth, Zoro and Sanji were heatedly in a battle to get the most hits. Both of them though were more preoccupied with sabotaging the other than shooting.

"Shishishi, that was fun!" Luffy proclaimed as he used his hand to adjust his straw hat. Chopper happily munched on some cotton candy as Usopp rubbed his sore back. Brooke stayed behind to help Franky get out of the bumper car without breaking it. Luffy looked around at all the rides giddy. "Which one should we try next?"

"Something not painful," Usopp suggested but was drowned out by Chopper's excited cries. Chopper pointed a hoof ahead at a stage with a crowd gathered around.

"That looks interesting!" Chopper said before he ran on ahead to try and get a closer look. Luffy and Usopp walked over and stood in the back of the crowd while Chopper successfully reached the front thanks to his size. On the stage stood a well-dressed young man with stark white hair and a cane held firmly in his right hand.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," the man paused at seeing Chopper and added, "and adorable critters! Welcome to the magic show!" The crowd applauded excitedly and Chopper looked starry-eyed at the magician. The magician twirled his cane with a smile on his face before he tapped the end onto the stage.

Without a word, he snapped his fingers suddenly making a white dove appear on his hand. The crowd's applause grew as the magician let the dove fly away. The magician then held up a deck of cards, took out the King of Spades, and then folded it four times. He then slowly waved the card in front of the crowd.

"What card am I holding?" he asked the audience and Chopper replied instantly, "King of Spades!"

The magician's smirk never left his face as he unfolded the card to show the Joker card. Chopper's jaw fell open and the magician knelt down to give Chopper the card. Chopper looked at the front and back of card trying to figure out the magician's trick. While Chopper was occupied, the magician straightened up and twirled his cane. With a bang, a small smoke cloud suddenly rose for the cane.

Chopper's attention was ripped from the card to the cane that had now become a live snake wrapped around the magician's hand. Chopper jolted in surprise as the snake hissed at him. The magician wordlessly lowered the snake's body so he held it by the neck and its body lightly swung. With another snap of his fingers, the snake became his cane again. The applause increased once more as the magician took a bow.

"So cool!" Chopper exclaimed in sheer bliss after the show had ended. Usopp nodded in agreement while Luffy was nowhere to be seen. After the two finally noticed Luffy's absence, they heard Luffy's voice come from the stage.

"Hey, join my crew!" Luffy said to the magician with a large grin on his face. The magician laughed lightly and shrugged his shoulders.

"Sorry, mate. I got my own plans," he answered politely and Luffy chuckled while Chopper pulled himself onto the stage.

"Here!" Chopper said as he held the card up to the magician. The magician shook his head and smiled down at Chopper.

"Keep it as a reminder of the show!" Chopper nodded and quickly put the card into his backpack with a childish grin on his face. Usopp looked at the magician's cane and tilted his head.

"Is that a normal cane?" he asked and the magician nodded.

"I have trouble walking sometimes so it helps for both that and my shows," he explained with a pat on his left leg. Then with a polite bow to the three pirates he added, "I hope you'll be sticking around for tonight's show."

"Can we, Luffy?" Chopper asked, practically bouncing up and down.

"Sure!" Luffy shot back, his large grin back on his face.

* * *

"What do you mean "Sure!"?!" Nami snapped later on the Thousand Sunny as the sun was setting. Luffy chuckled with a hand on his hat while Chopper showed the card he got to Robin.

"I wanna see the next show!" Luffy stated matter-of-factly, which caused Nami to groan.

"Fine! Do whatever you want!" Nami threw her hands up in the air angrily and stormed off to her room. Chopper looked over and frowned sadly.

"Did something happen today?" he asked and Robin smiled softly.

"She got in a fight with a shopkeeper over prices," she explained and Chopper made an 'o' with his mouth. Zoro yawned loudly and rested his head against the railing.

"I don't really care for magic," he said before he closed his eyes to sleep. Franky nodded in agreement and spoke to Chopper. "You guys can go see it. We'll stay and watch the ship." Chopper happily bounced up and down while Robin chuckled. Luffy grinned and ran over to Nami's door.

"Oi, Nami! You coming?" he called out and was answered when the door opened and Nami huffed at him.

"Alright, I'll come," she grumbled and scratched her head.

* * *

The streets were eerily quiet as Luffy, Nami, Usopp, Chopper, Robin, and Brooke made their way towards where the show would be held. Nami noticed the quietness and looked around cautiously. Before they reached the end of the street, someone poked their head out from around the corner.

"Quick, this way!" they whispered and ushered the pirates over. Luffy tilted his head in confusion but followed the person into the alley with the others right behind. The person, a middle-aged woman with light brown hair, sighed in relief. "Sorry but you can't go to the show right now!"

"Eh?! Why not?" Luffy asked loudly and was quickly hushed by the woman. She pointed down another alley that led to the show. Luffy and the others looked down the alley to see the stage and the front row seats. Luffy's jaw fell down as he and the others saw who was sitting in the front row.

"T-Tenryubito?!" Nami exclaimed in shock with her hands over her mouth to keep quiet. The woman who led them shuddered in fear of the bubble-headed nobles.

"Th-They came for the show so we've been trying to keep people away so they don't get targeted," the woman explained. Robin glanced upwards to see many people watching the stage safely from behind windows.

"Do they always come here?" Robin asked and the woman quickly shook her head. "No! This is the first time ever!"

Luffy narrowed his eyes as he glared at the nobles, his hands curled into fists. Nami sensed Luffy's anger and quickly grabbed his wrist.

"Don't do anything stupid!" she snapped quietly and Luffy gritted his teeth but kept still.

"Hey, hurry up! Start the show, you damn trash!" one of the Tenryubito shouted, followed by a couple shots in the air from a pistol he held. The magician from earlier nervously got on stage and bowed to the Tenryubito. Nami eyed the nobles and counted three of them flanked by bodyguards on either side with surely many Marines ready in case something happened.

"Sit down," the father Tenryubito said to his son who had the pistol in his hand. The son smiled and sat down between his mother and father. Usopp flinched when he noticed all three were sitting on the backs of slaves.

"Today I'll be showing you great nobles my best trick," the magician said, his voice a little shaky. Two assistant girls wheeled out two identical coffins and stood them upright on stage next to each other. The assistants quickly got into the coffins and the magician closed them. Then from offstage, the magician brought out four identical broadswords, two held in each hand.

"Better be a good one!" the son Tenryubito snapped and pointed his pistol at the magician. The magician chuckled sheepishly and then he began to slide the swords into the slots carved out of the coffins. Two swords went into the slots level with the magician's neck on both coffins.

"Seen this trick a dozen times!" the son Tenryubito jeered loudly and looked disgusted. The magician's lip twitched as he stood between the two coffins and smiled calmly.

"I assure you..." the magician trailed off as he knocked both of the coffins with his knuckles at the same time, which caused the lids to slowly swing open. The air chilled as everyone who watched saw the insides of the coffins. Blood began to pool around each coffin as the son Tenryubito sat all alone with his eyes wide in horror.

"Whoops," the magician chuckled innocently with a grin as the parents of the son Tenryubito stood in the coffins. Each one with two swords stabbed into their necks with blood that flowed down their bodies. "Looks like the trick failed."


	2. Chapter 2 - Start of Tragedy

**Author's Note: The chapters should get a bit longer after this since my personal business stuff is over. Anyway enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 2 – Start of Tragedy**

* * *

The stage area was deathly silent, except for the constant trickle of blood that fell from the bodies of the two Tenryubito. The magician's grin stayed on his face as he watched the son Tenryubito shake in pure rage.

"How dare you..." the son Tenryubito muttered before he pointed his pistol at the magician. The magician eyed the pistol while the son glared lividly at him and then screamed. "HOW DARE YOU FILTH LAY A HAND ON US!"

The son fired the pistol at the magician's head. The sound reverberated around the area, the bullet flew towards its target and then imbedded itself squarely into the head of one of the two Tenryubito bodyguards. The son's eyes widened in shock as the bodyguard now stood on stage where the magician had been.

"L-Lord..." the shot bodyguard muttered before he fell backwards dead on the stage. The son's hand trembled until light applause came from next to him.

"Wow, good shot!" the magician said cheerfully as he stood where the bodyguard had been. The Tenryubito jumped away in shock while the magician leaned on his cane with a smile.

"Wh-What are you?!" the Tenryubito son cried out. The magician tilted his head in mock confusion.

"I'm a magician. Isn't it obvious?"

* * *

As this happened, Luffy and the others stood in a mix of shock and surprise. Usopp, Chopper, and Nami clutched at each other while they cried.

"We gotta get out of here!" Usopp cried out, and Chopped nodded in agreement.

"The Marines will be coming!" Chopper wailed. Before any of them could say something else, the Den Den Mushi in Luffy's pocket began to ring. Luffy got the small snail out and answered it.

"Oi! Luffy! We got to get out of here!" Zoro's voice said out of the snail.

"Is it the Navy?" Luffy asked the snail.

"Yeah! Three battleships showed up a while ago along with some weird looking ship! Those bubble people from Shabaody were on it!" Zoro replied, which made Luffy glance to everyone else. Nami leaned over to the snail and asked, "Is Sanji-kun there?"

"The Ero-Cook popped up right after the Marines came."

"Shut it, Mosshead!" Sanji's voice snapped back in the background followed by the sound of fighting. Franky's voice then came up.

"I brought the Sunny to the north side of the island! Get here fast!"

"Okay!" Luffy responded and put the snail back into his pocket before he turned to his crew and they began to race away. The woman who hid them quickly ducked into a different alley and entered one of the houses to escape.

"We have to avoid any of the major roads!" Nami instructed as the crew weaved through the small side-streets.

"How crazy would someone have to be to do that?!" Usopp wondered with a glance back in the direction of the stage to make sure they weren't being followed.

* * *

"Surround the stage!" a Marine shouted while dozens of soldiers obeyed. The magician watched patiently with the Tenryubito son's pistol in his hand pressed against the Tenryubito's head. The other bodyguard lay on the ground shot in the head as well. The Marine soldiers pointed their rifles at the magician after they had surrounded him.

"Oh? If it isn't the Entertainer," came a relaxed voice from behind the Marines. The magician perked up at the voice and smirked. The Marines in front of the magician backed up to make an opening as a relaxed Kizaru walked out between them. "It's been four years, right?"

"Well if it isn't Borsalino! Long time no see!" the magician said calmly while the Tenryubito shook with fear.

"Admiral! Kill this filth-" the Tenryubito couldn't finish his sentence as the pistol's trigger was pulled and a bullet punctured his head.

"Shush now, we're reminiscing," the magician commented. This caused the Marines that surrounded him to sweat nervously as the Tenryubito son's body fell to the ground.

"Oh dear. You shouldn't have done that," Kizaru said with a light sigh before he pointed at the magician. The magician shrugged his shoulders with a little laugh. The tip of Kizaru's finger began to shine towards the magician. "This time you die, Evant Karnivel."

* * *

The port was empty as all the Marines were either at the stage or on the other port to the south. Luffy and the others raced down the road, the Sunny in sight out on the water with the sails up.

"Hold it!" a shout came from behind them, and Usopp glanced back and screamed.

"Marines!"

Luffy shot his arms front and managed to grab onto the Sunny's railing.

"Hold onto me!" Luffy shouted, and everyone quickly held onto him before Luffy rocketed off the port. Luffy crashed onto the deck of his ship while Franky caught Usopp and Chopper. Zoro grabbed Brooke by the ankle and swung the skeleton down onto the deck. Sanji rushed to catch Nami and Robin, but instead Robin caught herself and Nami with arms blooming from the deck.

"Nami-san! Robin-chan!" Sanji cheered happily as the two girls dusted themselves off.

"Where have you been, Sanji-kun?" Nami snapped bitterly. Sanji twitched and started to tremble.

"Th-That's...!" he started to say until Zoro cut in.

"The idiot was chasing girls who turned out to be men." Sanji glared angrily at Zoro until a cannonball hit the water next to the ship. Franky rushed to the helm and gripped it tightly.

"Save the fight for later, you two!" Usopp snapped as he took his position.

"Franky! Get us out of here!" Nami ordered. Franky grinned widely at the order.

"Aye! Brace up!" Franky called out as the cannon in the rear of the ship began to glow. Everyone but Luffy, who was embedded in the deck's lawn, buckled down as Franky's grin widened.

"Coup de... BURST!" Franky shouted before the ship rocketed away with a loud bang. The Marines on the port watched the ship fly away in amazement.

"How-" one of the Marines began to say until the house behind them exploded suddenly and the Marines were pitched forward onto the ground.

"Hmm, you've gotten better," Kizaru commented as he landed on the port gracefully. The Marines looked at the burning building and then to Kizaru, the latter of which had blood down the side of his head. The burning rubble shifted and then one of the Marines screamed in pain as he was engulfed by the flames among the debris. The other Marines jolted as the magician named Evant now stood next to them where the now burning Marine once stood.

Evant patted his shoulder with a sigh, the fabric burnt slightly. He swung his cane around to get the embers off it, and smacked the other Marines in the face while he did so. Kizaru raised his knee that began to shine before he suddenly appeared in front of Evant with his knee to the magician's face.

"Ha, that scared me," a voice suddenly said which halted Kizaru's knee. Evant's eyes widened as a cold sweat rolled down his face. Kizaru and the magician looked over at the water to see someone standing on top of the surface before they hopped onto the port. "That was my first time seeing a ship fly on its own."

"B-Boss..." Evant muttered quietly, unable to mask how his body trembled at the sight of the hooded person. Kizaru lowered his knee and whistled lightly.

"Oh my, if it isn't the-" Kizaru was cut off abruptly as he went through several buildings. Evant gulped nervously and watched the hooded person lower their foot they used to kick Kizaru. Their hood fell down from the wind that was picked up by the kick. The girl's red hair fluttered in the sea breeze, her glassy eyes set upon the direction Kizaru went.

"Whose ship was that?" she asked as her serene yet chilling voice sent shivers down Evant's back.

"P-Probably the Straw Hat Pirates. They were the only pirates I saw on the island today," he responded nervously, the hand that gripped his cane sweaty. The girl nodded slightly and then took notice of the Marines.

"You've gotten sloppy," she commented bluntly.

"I'm not the combat type. I didn't think Borsalino would show up," he responded with a shaky smile. The girl tucked a strand of her red hair behind her ear and turned around to the water.

"Whatever. Get back to the others," she ordered and hopped down onto the surface of the water. The Marines that still stood, frozen by what had just happened noticed the initials "EX3" on the back of the girl's coat.

"Where will you be off to?" Evant asked and leaned on his cane while he took out a small Den Den Mushi from his pants' pocket.

"The ship went north towards Freslias. I want to go see it again."

* * *

The sun beat down on the Marines as they were busy with the rubble on the island. Kizaru slowly opened his eyes as he lay among the debris. Several Marines stood around him and immediately saluted as Kizaru sat up.

"That was a good nap," Kizaru mumbled with a smile as he rubbed the top of his head.

"S-Sir! The criminal got away! Also Fleet Admiral Akainu is on the line!" one of the Marines announced, covered in burns and bruises. Kizaru sighed deeply and scratched his cheek. He reached out for the Den Den Mushi and shooed the Marines away so they couldn't hear.

"What happened, Kizaru?" Akainu's voice asked as it came out of the snail's mouth. Kizaru frowned looked around at the damages.

"We were met with some unruly people. I suppose I'll take the heat for this?" Kizaru asked and nothing came from the snail for a couple moments until it spoke.

"No. Destroy their ship and blame it on a Sea King attack. We'll mourn the Tenryubito's "accidental" deaths later," Akainu ordered and then after a second asked, "Who did you encounter of their group?"

"Evant Karnivel and their dangerous boss Es-" Kizaru answered but trailed off as he noticed someone approach them. The person saluted politely to Kizaru.

"Rear Admiral Izune reporting, sir. The citizens who witnessed the act have been successfully rounded up," the woman reported, her long white hair clung to her back. Kizaru stood up and dusted his legs off.

"Good, give them some bullshit story of what happened," Kizaru commanded. The Rear Admiral bowed and headed off to follow his order. Kizaru looked back to the Den Den Mushi with Akainu on the line. "Do I have permission to go after them?"

"No, return to Mariejois and inform CP0 to increase the guard. I'll send Fujitora after them."

* * *

"That was so scary," Usopp murmured for the hundredth time as he and Chopper lay on the Sunny's lawn. Chopper nodded in agreement, the playing card he had been given held between his hooves. The Straw Hats had successfully managed to reach the next island, a forest-covered summer island. On the shore lay several giant monsters that had attacked them earlier, one having almost eaten Usopp.

"Well we didn't get to restock on Haname, so make due with monster meat for a while," Sanji explained to the crew while Luffy drooled hungrily at the pile of monsters, clearly fine with the meat. Nami sighed sadly as she sat with her head in her hands.

"This is going to make things tougher for us," she said and Luffy perked up, his cheeks stuffed with monster meat while Sanji kicked his head repeatedly for stealing.

"What makes you say that?" Luffy asked between bites.

"We were seen of course! They'll probably think we were involved!" she snapped angrily but Luffy just laughed it off.

"We'll just deal with anything that happens!" he stated matter-of-factly. Nami was about to snap again, but suddenly slumped forward and fell onto the ground. Luffy jolted and jumped to his feet just as Brooke, who had leaned over the ship railing, suddenly fell down onto the shore unconscious. Robin was passed out on her lawn chair on the ship deck, Usopp and Chopper fast asleep on the lawn. Franky fell backwards with a loud thud onto the shore, his eyes rolled back white.

"What's happened?!" Luffy asked in panic as he looked around. Sanji had fallen to one knee, but was still conscious as he gritted his teeth. Zoro seemed only a little fazed as he stood from where he was had been napping, his right hand shook ever so slightly.

"Something's coming," he said gravely, his hand placed onto the hilt of his swords as he braced himself. Sanji stood back up slowly as some sweat ran down his face.

"Was that... Conqueror's Haki?" he asked between heavy breathes. Luffy balled his hands into fists and shot his fist behind him towards the ocean. His fist smashed into the ocean surface, which caused water to fly upon into the air. Zoro bent his knee as he readied himself to strike at the figure who landed on the shore in front of them.

"Impressive," the figure spoke before they began to lower their hood. Sanji then immediately fell to the ground unconscious upon seeing the person's face. The girl paused for a second at the abrupt action and then resumed lowering her hood.

"Who are you?" Luffy snapped angrily as he reeled his arm back to normal. The girl brushed her short red hair out of her eyes as she stared at Luffy silently for a moment. The girl then glanced at Zoro and back at Luffy before she opened her mouth.

"A fan of yours."

* * *

Kizaru relaxed into his chair back on his ship. He reached over and picked up a stack of posters from the top of the desk. He leafed through them and then stopped at one that showed the hooded red-haired girl. He pulled her poster out and stared at it.

"So young yet such a big threat to everyone," he said out loud to himself. He held the poster gingerly before putting it at the front of the posters stack. The sun hit against the poster, illuminating the photo of the girl as she stood in front of a burning World Government flag.

**WANTED  
****DEAD OR ALIVE  
**"**Bloody" Estria  
****Reward: 900,000,000**


	3. Chapter 3 - 520 vs 900

**Author's Note: I'll add some translation notes at the bottom just in case. Enjoy the cameo many probably won't know! Kehehehe!**

* * *

**Chapter 3 – 520 vs 900**

* * *

The air was still as Luffy and Zoro stood on the shore and faced Estria in front of them. Zoro calmly unsheathed his three katanas and placed one between his teeth. Luffy cracked his knuckles without a word and upon the cracking sound, Zoro dashed forward towards Estria.

"Santoryu Ogi..." Zoro began to bend his body as he approached the red-haired girl. Estria's eye twitched as she stood in place with no sign of moving. Zoro gritted down his teeth and started his spin. "Rokudo no Tsuji!"

Zoro landed behind Estria as six slashes were made in her body, and sent blood into the air from the wounds. Estria swayed slightly while Zoro slowly straightened up.

"Chi Chi no-" Zoro's eyes widened suddenly as six slashes appear on his chest, but with no blood flowing from them. Estria rotated her wrist with a little exhale. "Tsume."

Zoro fell down to one knee and his leg that supported him shook lightly. Estria glanced behind her to watch the swordsman push himself back onto his feet.

"A strike without Haki is worthless against me," she spoke calmly while blood dripped from her fingers. Zoro narrowed his eyes at the blood and Estria's attention snapped back to Luffy. Luffy had one arm stretched back as red steam rose from his body.

"Gear Second Armaments," Luffy said with his eyes fixed on Estria. He kicked off the ground and reached Estria in a split second. Estria made a small 'o' with her lips as Luffy's fortified fist hurled towards her head.

"You can do that too, huh?" Estria muttered quietly. Luffy's twitched for a split second as he saw the same red steam rising from Estria's body. In a flash the girl was gone, but not for long as her foot slammed Luffy in the head. Luffy smashed head-first into a large tree, causing it to break in half and topple to the side.

"Luffy!" Zoro called out in concern for his captain, but couldn't make a move before Estria's foot collided with his chest. Zoro coughed up blood as he was blown off the shore and into the ocean. Estria gracefully landed on the ground just as Luffy burst out of the tree remains towards Estria.

"Jet Pistol!" he cried out, launching his fist at Estria. Estria vanished again but appeared again above Luffy. Luffy quickly tilted his head up just in time to see Estria hold her left arm behind her just like Luffy usually did.

"Chi Chi no..." Estria brought her pure red fist down onto Luffy's head. Luffy hit the ground and made a small crater in the shore. The sound of the impact resembled that of a lightning bolt. "Inazuma!"

Estria touched down outside of the crater as her left hand returned to a normal color. The ocean surface broke and Zoro grabbed onto the shore to pull himself out of the water. He saw the crater with Luffy's legs sticking up slightly. Estria looked to the swordsman and sighed softly, the red steam that came from her body slowly disappeared. Zoro noticed the steam and narrowed his eyes.

"A Logia user?" he wondered as he gripped his katanas tightly, the one that had been in his mouth sheathed again. Estria nodded calmly and held her left hand out to the side. Zoro braced himself as some blood began to pool at Estria's fingertips.

"Improvised Fishman Karate: Uchichi," Estria stated and swung her arm at Zoro. The blood on her hand was flung towards Zoro, picking up speed as they sped towards him. Zoro swiftly deflected the multiple droplets into the water. Upon hitting the water, the water exploded and was blown into the air as if a cannonball had landed there.

"I ate the Chi Chi no Mi," Estria explained as blood began to pool around her from her feet. The blood began to move and shaped itself into a katana. After shaping itself, the blood slowly turned into a shiny silver like an ordinary katana. "I'm a bloody girl."

Zoro readied his own swords as Estria dashed towards him, her sword scrapped the ground and created sparks from the blade. Zoro swung his blades towards Estria as her own sword swung upwards. The swords clashed loudly and caused the ground beneath them to crack slightly.

"Hmm..." Estria hummed, seeing her katana's blade begin to crack. She slid her right foot onto the edge of the crack the impact made on the ground. Zoro pressed down on Estria's sword, creating more cracks in the blade she held. "You're truly a better swordsman than me, though... that isn't saying much," Estria commented before she said, "Chi Chi no Obelisk."

Zoro flinched as the ground underneath him cracked and exploded into a tower of blood. Estria's blade shattered and she swatted away the fragments that got close to her. As the blood tower went back down, Zoro landed roughly on his feet, glaring at Estria. Estria suddenly leaned to the left just as Luffy's fist rocketed past her and almost hit Zoro.

"Dang it!" Luffy remarked under his breath as he reeled his arm back. Estria stared at Luffy and hummed softly.

"That was it," she said quite calmly despite the heated mood. Luffy raised an eyebrow in confusion as he snapped his arm back in place.

"What was it?" he asked innocently and Estria pointed to his arm.

"The punch that sent that Tenryubito flying two years ago," Estria explained while Zoro placed his third katana back in his mouth. Estria flexed her fingers slowly while her eyes stayed fixed on Luffy. "You made me a fan then."

"So I assume that means you're Estria Xivia Ened, the leader of the anti-Tenryubito group "EX3"." Luffy, Zoro, and Estria looked towards the deck of the Sunny where Robin stood leaning her elbows on the railing.

"Robin! You're okay!" Luffy exclaimed happily. Robin nodded with a soft smile.

"I was asleep before she came and when I woke up everyone was out cold," she stated and then giggled softly. "I figured you two didn't want me to interrupt your fight though so I just watched."

"You can be pretty cold sometimes," Zoro muttered under his breath. Estria narrowed her eyes as she looked at Robin.

"How do you know of me?" she asked and Robin continued to smile.

"I've known about you and your group for four years now, though I only learned your name a year ago," Robin said as she rested her head on her hand. Estria exhaled softly and brushed some hair out of her eyes.

"Then it seems I can't leave with just an autograph." Luffy and Zoro immediately braced themselves as they felt a wave of malice come from Estria. The air began to chill as Estria raised her right hand above her head and slammed it onto the ground.

"Chi Chi no Volcano!" she cried out, the ground began to break apart underneath her. Luffy and Zoro wobbled a little as the ground moved and then erupted into a giant spout of red blood. The spout also hit the Thousand Sunny and caused the ship to fly into the air. Robin gripped the railing tightly as she kept an eye open to below.

"Robin! Everyone!" Luffy shouted up at the ship, but his eyes suddenly widened as something broke the clouds above the ship. Estria rode the blood spout and landed on Sunny's figurehead, holding Franky by the leg. She tilted her head up at the parting clouds.

"There they are," she said as a giant steel ship lowered itself from the clouds towards the rising Sunny. Luffy gritted his teeth angrily and shot his arm up towards the Sunny, but the shifting ground caused him to swerve and miss the ship. Zoro prepared his attack but quickly jumped to the side as a large steel blade crashed down where he had stood.

"We'll be taking your ship and crew. Sorry, but we can't have people as unpredictable as you running around," Estria's voice called down to Luffy, but that only made him madder.

"GIVE ME BACK MY CREW!" he bellowed. Something small then fell and pierced his shoulder. Luffy wobbled a little and then collapsed. Another small object hit Zoro in the arm and he collapsed as well. As the spout weakened, large mechanical arms emerged from the hull of the flying ship and grabbed onto the Sunny. A hatch was opened in the hull and the arms moved the Sunny into the flying ship.

On the shore, Luffy gritted his teeth weakly as he tried to move his body. He could only watch as the flying ship slowly rose again and out of sight behind the clouds. Beside him, Zoro and Sanji lay unconscious next to Luffy. Luffy's vision slowly darkened and his head landed on the ground.

* * *

As day turned to night, the shore of the island was silent except for the crackling of a small fire. Sanji flicked his lighter open and lit his cigarette in his mouth before blowing out some smoke. Zoro sat meditating by a tree, his three katanas rested against his arm. Luffy wasn't with them, but the trail of broken trees suggested he was blowing off steam by smashing things.

"How could both of you let that happen?" Sanji remarked bitterly with a scowl at Zoro.

"I didn't see you doing anything, Curly Brows!" Zoro snapped back angrily. The two glared at each other until Luffy flew out of the forest and landed in the ocean with a loud splash. The two slowly turned their heads to the water and then took a second to process what had just happened.

"That was..." they both trailed off and quickly jumped into the water to get Luffy out. They pulled the anchor captain back onto the shore. Luffy coughed up water and sat up with a light wheeze.

"Damn, it wasn't big enough," he muttered.

"What the hell were you thinking?!" Sanji snapped as he handed Luffy back his hat. Luffy put his hat on his head calmly.

"I thought I could build a slingshot and get to an island with a boat," he explained with a smile. Zoro and Sanji groaned in unison at their captain's idea.

"Why not just build a boat from a tree?" they suggested and then glared at each other. Luffy took a moment to think and then put his fist on his palm with his mouth in an 'o' shape. Before he could say anything, Zoro and Sanji snapped, "Don't tell me you just now thought of it!"

"So how do you make a boat?" Luffy asked yet neither of the two replied. Zoro scratched his head and tilted his head to the side.

"You need a mast."

"That's obvious, you dumb moss head!" Sanji snapped and the two began to fight. Luffy laughed at their fighting until he noticed something on the water.

"Hey! It's a boat!" Luffy exclaimed excitedly. Zoro and Sanji paused their fight to look at the ocean to see a very battered dingy float towards the island.

"Uhh that's hardly a boat..." Sanji muttered until he noticed an arm over the side of the dingy. Zoro and Luffy noticed the arm too and Luffy extended his arm to grab and pull the dingy onto the shore.

"Oi! You okay?" Luffy asked as he leaned over to look at the person in the dingy. The arm twitched and the person inside the dingy yawned loudly. The person turned their head to look at Luffy and he blinked a couple times before he jumped to his feet.

"Ah! People!" he shouted and stepped back, but the back of his leg hit the side of the dingy and made he fall backwards onto the hard shore ground. Sanji blew out some smoke from a new cigarette and tapped it at the man while Luffy laughed.

"Who the hell are you?" Sanji asked with a scowl as the man sat up, rubbing his short maroon-colored hair in pain. The young man stood slowly, just about the same height as Zoro, and patted the dirt off his brown long coat with several tears and holes in it. He then realized Sanji was talking to him and he looked at the chef with strange golden eyes.

"Me? I'm nobody named Roland," he said with a polite smile. Sanji stared at the man silently before he put his cigarette back to his mouth and muttered, "Weirdo."

* * *

Rayleigh stretched his arms over his head as he sat in Shakky's bar with a glass of rum in front of him. Shakky looked over from behind the bar and smiled.

"Tiring day?" she asked and Rayleigh nodded while he rubbed his neck.

"Getting older is awful," he commented with a sigh, "I was only able to get forty ships coated today."

Shakky chuckled lightly and topped off Rayleigh's drink with a smile. Rayleigh took the drink and lifted it to his lips before downing the rum in one go. Rayleigh let out a breath and smiled to the ceiling as he leaned back.

"Getting old... reminds me of the days with Roger. We had one guy with us who never seemed to get older," Rayleigh said as Shakky took his empty glass to wash it. Rayleigh took his glasses off to rub his eyes. "That guy was a scary good navigator."

"Scary good?" Shakky asked as she dried the glass. Rayleigh nodded and looked back to the bar in front of him as Shakky handed him a plate of apple slices. Rayleigh took one and munched on it with a smile.

"He seemed to be like Roger, someone who could hear what wasn't there. I wonder how that old bat Roland is doing..."

* * *

**Chi - Blood**

**Tsume - Claw**

**Uchichi - Blood Shot**


	4. Chapter 4 - The Nobody Roland

**Author's Note: So as promised, longer chapters. Mostly because this has a lot of content to go through. I also really like reviews hint hint nudge nudge wink wink. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 4 – The Nobody Roland**

* * *

Nami groaned softly, her eyes slowly fluttering open. She lifted her head slightly and paused from a sharp pain in her neck. She looked around slowly to see that she was on a beach with her legs still in the water. Nami groggily got to her feet and staggered a little.

"Where..." she whispered, her sight fading again before she fell back onto the beach. She dug her fingers into the sand and forcefully pushed herself back up. As she did she noticed several small cuts in her legs. "Was I washed away somewhere...? That seems so unlikely..."

Nami pursed her lips slightly and resumed her scan of the beach. In the distance she could make out the shape of some buildings in what looked like a city hugging the side of a tall volcano. After she brushed the sand and seaweed bits out of her hair, Nami slowly limped towards the city, hoping to find some answers.

* * *

Robin stood with her arms crossed over her chest as she faced someone. Behind her, Chopper groaned and snapped awake before the little reindeer jumped to his feet.

"Where are we?" Chopper asked in fright as he whipped around to look at the interior of the room they were in. The walls were all steel and a small circular window showed clouds passing by. "Are we flying?!"

"Ah, Chopper-san. You're awake," Robin said with a smile, turning her head towards the doctor. Chopper jumped and clung the window's edge to pull himself up to view the clouds. In the corner of the room, Usopp sat huddled while he muttered something about dying to himself. Franky was also in the room, his giant arms bound against his back by steel plates.

"Oi, be careful, Chopper. Wouldn't want to accidentally break the glass, Franky called over and Chopper immediately jumped away from the window scared. Chopper ran to Robin's leg and clung to it.

"W-Where are we?!"

"We were abducted by a rebel group," Robin explained which made the person in front of her scowl. Chopper the person and stared up at him. The person glared down at Chopper with a lollipop stick sticking out of his mouth. Chopper shivered as he looked at the young man's red and blue eyes.

"As I was telling the lady here, you all are just being held to the side so you don't get in our way," he explained as he smoothed out his dark blue hair that immediately stuck back up. Chopper noticed several small tools on the man's belt and his brown and yellow sleeveless suit buttoned up by gear-shaped clasps. The man tugged on his brown gloves and took the lollipop out of his mouth. "You're free to wander around my ship so long as you don't leave it. If you do, well let's just say we'll put you out of our way permanently."

"So you made this flying ship?" Franky asked, a large grin on his face. The man nodded and stuck the lollipop back in his mouth.

"Of course I did. Only a genius like me could create such beauty as this ship Exodus. Wood is old school and steel is the future. Also it's not "flying", it's falling with style-"

"FALLING?!" Chopper and Usopp screamed in pure terror as they clung to each other. The man's eyebrow twitched angrily at being interrupted and resumed his explanation to Franky who looked very interested in the subject.

"This ship uses several machines called turbines to use the wind to power the engine. From there the ship uses that wind as a source of power to lift the ship and keep it airborne. However, since this ship is so huge and heavy it can't stay in the air for too long. I saw a similar structure on your ship but much smaller and..."

The man continued talking, but the contents of his explanation went right over Usopp and Chopper's heads while Franky nodded in understanding. Robin coughed politely to snap the man out of his rant.

"Might we hear your name, Genius-san?" Robin asked and the man sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"Cray Bessemer. Four years ago I dismantled the Gates of Justice and got slapped with a bounty of 440 million. Well I also dismantled a couple other government-owned structures but those weren't as fun to watch the aftermath of," Cray said with a shrug and grin.

"Oh I've heard of that super name!" Franky remarked excitedly taking his pose but his arms were still pinned to his back. "The Bessemer Family are renowned for their work with ships!"

Cray nodded proudly with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Steel is our family's heart and soul! Well, at least it was," Cray stated with a sigh and scratched his head. He looked to Franky and Robin with a stern look in his eyes. "Anyway, you're all free to wander, ah I said that already, but stick away from the baths for now."

"Oh? Why not there?" Robin asked with a curious smile.

"Our boss is using it right now and she likes being alone," Cray remarked. Franky nodded his head.

"Where's Sunny?" he asked and Cray motioned his head to the door of the room.

"If you mean your ship, it's through there. Oh yeah you can stop pretending to be bound too. I just put those on you to at least stall you while I took your cola." With that, Franky snapped the steel bounds off his arms and quickly checked his cola supply.

"Ah you noticed, huh?" he said with a smirk as he looked to Cray.

"Of course I did. I also swiped the cola off your ship so you can't refill till we-" Before Cray could finish, the door to the room slapped open and in walked a girl with a large grin on her face and a bottle of cola in her hand.

"Hey, Cray! We're out of cola!" she commented happily with a small burp. Cray slapped his hand onto his face with a groan.

"... Till we repay you for the cola..." he finished bitterly, glaring at the girl with his blue eye. The girl laughed and wiped her mouth with the back of gloved hand.

"Whew, that was good stuff," she continued, completely ignoring the mood as Franky's jaw hung open at her. The girl reached up to adjust her blue beret on her dirty brown hair, her grin still on her face.

"This... person is Verde. She's an asshole who does things without caring," Cray explained with a scowl as Verde puffed her cheeks up.

"It's not "asshole", it's "artist"! Honestly if it wasn't for me we'd be flying a dull gray blob!"

"I happen to like gray over your excuse for art!" Cray snapped back and the two pressed their foreheads together, scowling at each other. Robin giggled behind her hand as she watched them.

"This seems familiar."

* * *

Sanji and Zoro sneezed loudly as they walked through the forest behind Luffy and Roland. Luffy was following Roland as he led them through the bramble.

"You sure this is the way?" Sanji asked Roland who looked back.

"Um... maybe? Mr. Oak Tree back there told me he saw something weird fly into the forest that screamed out your names as it flew," Roland explained and Sanji gritted his teeth angrily.

"You're the weird person here talking with trees!"

* * *

Brooke sighed depressingly, his body twisted up in vines as he hung high over the forest floor. Earlier he had been sent flying into the air by Estria's last attack and landed in the forest covering the wild island.

"If only I had gotten up sooner I wouldn't be here..." Brooke murmured sadly and then sighed again. Brooke thought back to when he was about to jump to his feet to assist Luffy and Zoro against that Estria girl but was too late. Brooke looked down onto the ground to see his cane lying on a patch of broken leaves and branches.

"Someone please come help..." Brooke whispered.

"Ah there he is!" Brooke perked up and looked back down to see Luffy, Sanji, and Zoro standing beneath him. Luffy grinned happily as Zoro cut Brooke down and the living skeleton happily stretched before he picked up his cane.

"You came to save me!" Brooke cheered happily.

"You know you could've used that soul thing of yours to come find us," Sanji commented. Brooke stood still for a second before he curled up against a tree sadly.

"I could have..." he muttered sadly while Luffy laughed.

"Yosh, that makes four of us! Now we got to figure out how to get the others back!" Luffy announced with a grin while Sanji clued Brooke in to what happened. Roland peeked out from behind a tree nervously.

"Is it safe to come out?" he asked and Luffy nodded his head.

"Oh yeah, Brooke. This is Rolex-"

"Roland."

"He's the reason we found you," Luffy explained, completely ignoring Roland's interjection. Brooke nodded his head and bowed politely to Roland.

"Good to meet you, kind sir Rolex," Brooke said formally. Roland watched Brooke bow and shook his head.

"Ah it was nothing! My senses are a lot better than a human's since I'm a vampire. And my name's Roland-" Roland abruptly stopped as Brooke straightened up. Roland's eyes widened as he stared at Brooke's face.

"AHHHHHHH! A TALKING SKELETON!?"

"AHHHHHHH! A VAMPIRE!?"

* * *

Later on the shore, Roland sighed as Brooke held a cross made from two sticks in his face. Roland batted the cross away as they all sat around the fire Sanji made.

"As I've said, just because the stories say crosses work doesn't mean they do on all of us," he explained to Brooke who had surrounded himself with wooden stick crosses. "Besides you have no blood anyway."

"Ah you're right," Brooke said calmly and put the crosses aside. Sanji walked over with some chunks of cooked monster meat that Luffy happily sank his teeth into. Zoro was fast asleep against his tree as Sanji sat down by the fire and addressed Roland.

"So why's a vampire floating around in a dingy? Aren't you supposed to be unable to cross moving water?" Sanji asked and Roland tilted his head slightly with a frown.

"No I just get seasick easily. I figured I'd get better at dealing with it if I sailed more. I still get nasty sunburns in sunlight though, and garlic smells god awful," Roland explained and watched Luffy finish devouring the meat greedily. Roland's eyes were fixed on Luffy's hat while Brooke took out his violin from who-knows-where and began to play a soothing tune.

"Still though, how crazy does one have to be to sail in the New World in a dingy?" Sanji muttered as he lit a cigarette. Roland laughed embarrassed by the comment and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Why thank you for the compliment."

"It wasn't one!"

Luffy laughed as Sanji leaned back and sighed. He took a long drag of his cigarette before blowing smoke upwards.

"Does this mean you're a navigator?" Luffy asked and Roland nodded his head slightly.

"I have some experience in sailing, though it's been 25 years since I sailed with others. In fact..." Roland trailed off as he kept staring at Luffy's hat. Luffy noticed his stare and put a hat on his hat protectively. Roland smiled softly and closed his eyes.

"... Yep, that's his hat," he whispered under his breath. Luffy raised an eyebrow while Roland opened his eyes and smiled at Luffy. "Since it seems to like you, I'll help you out."

"Eh?" Luffy, Sanji, and Brooke looked at Roland in confusion as he stood up and looked at the biggest tree near them.

"You'll help us too? Thank you so much," Roland said to the tree as he placed a hand on the tree's trunk. Luffy felt a small shiver run down his arms as he was immediately reminded of Rayleigh for a second. Roland closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Over by where he slept, Zoro cracked an eye open to watch.

"Color of Disarmament," Roland said clearly, the air around him shifting ever so slightly. Roland's eyes snapped open and the tree burst apart. Luffy, Sanji, and Brooke watched with their mouth open as the tree's trunk fell to the ground, crudely shaped as a boat with a pair of oars inside.

"So cool! What was that? Haki?" Luffy asked excitedly, his eyes sparkling as Roland checked the boat and oars. He glanced over at Luffy and chuckled lightly.

"He asked me the same thing when I did this for him too," Roland stated and began to pull the boat over to the pirates.

"Hmm? Him who?" Luffy asked before Roland finished pulling the boat over. Roland patted his hands to get some loose bark fragments off his hands.

"The former owner of that hat, Gol D. Roger."

* * *

As the sun rose from the horizon, Sanji and Zoro kicked off the shore to push the small boat forward into the water. Luffy sat in front of the two as they rowed in time with Brooke's violin playing. Roland sat facing Luffy with his coat pulled up over his head so the sun didn't hit his skin.

"Ah, you met Rayleigh? Good to hear he's still kicking," Roland said with a smile. Luffy grinned back, rocking a little with his legs crossed.

"Rayleigh taught me how to use Haki for a couple months. I owe him a lot!" Luffy explained happily. Roland chuckled and adjusted his coat so his hands were free. He held three fingers out on each of his hands without moving them out of the shade his coat made.

"Haki as you know consists of three "Colors": Observation, Armament, and Conqueror's. However, if you're capable of using Conqueror's Haki, you can use the other two in a different way," Roland said as he put one hand down and kept holding up three fingers. Luffy nodded slowly as he listened intently.

"The first is Observation. Normally this Color gives you incredible foresight into the world around you. Usually used to dodge incoming attacks and sensing where others are, this Color is pretty fundamental."

"Is that how you found me?" Brooke asked and Roland shook his head.

"No, I had the trees led me to you."

"That makes no sense..." Sanji grumbled as he kept rowing. Roland cleared his throat and withdrew his other hand as the sun rose higher.

"Now then, Observation can be used a different way if you mix Conqueror's Haki into it. Though this is incredibly difficult and not many know of it even. As far as I know, only vampires like me know about them. But anyway, this mix of Haki can interrupt the Observation of those around you, making you figuratively disappear from their sight. This is called Interference."

"I like the sound of that!" Sanji interjected with a grin as he imagined Nami and Robin. Roland stared at him cautiously as the cook's eyes had turned to hearts. Roland adjusted his coat again so more of him as underneath it as the sun rose higher.

"The next is Armament. With Conqueror's, Armament becomes Disarmament like I showed you on the island. Ah, turn the boat a little to the right," Roland said and the two rowers quickly turned the boat before a giant serpent Sea King broke the surface next to them. The Sea King turned its neck to roar at the small boat until it suddenly froze up. Luffy looked at the Sea King to see it sweating nervously. Roland smiled as he was staring into the Sea King's eyes. Roland stood up, keeping his skin hidden from the sun, and addressed the Sea King. "Please tow us to the nearest island."

The Sea King's body trembled at Roland's golden eyes and it obediently got under the boat and began to swim. Luffy and the other three watched impressed as Roland sat back down.

"Where was I... Oh yes. Disarmament is where you use Armament Haki but not as a fortifier for yourself. Instead you project the Haki into the target's body to attack it as you see fit. It's like a shockwave of sorts. It's how I made this boat," Roland stated with a smiled and pulled his coat down more over his head till he was completely hidden under his coat.

"You really burn that easily?" Sanji asked as he relaxed against the side of the boat. Roland's reply was muffled by his coat, but Sanji didn't really need an answer. Luffy was too busy looking at the horizon as he thought of what Roland just talked about.

"More ways to use Haki, huh... Sounds cool!"

* * *

The Exodus touched down smoothly on the ocean surface, its exterior covered in splashes of every sort of color imaginable. Chopper and Usopp watched it land from a large window in the containment room the Sunny was held in. Franky was discussing ships and such with Cray as Robin sat down on her chair onboard the Sunny. She cracked open her book and began to read quietly. Elsewhere on the ship, steam rose to the ceiling as the shower was on as it poured water into the basin.

Estria stood silently underneath the shower, running the water through her hair with her fingers. Her body covered in scars as she turned her body around to let the water pour down her naked back. As the water ran down her back, Estria slowly reached her left hand over her shoulder. Estria lowered her head as her fingers touched the edge of the coarse skin of her back.

Her teeth gritted lightly as she ran her finger along the edge of the Tenryubito brand placed squarely on her back identical to Boa Hancock's. Voices began to echo in Estria's head as she touched the brand.

_My name is Fisher Tiger! As of now you are all free!_

Estria banged her fists against the bath's wall angrily as she gritted her teeth harder.

_The Nobles are coming! Run!_

Blood dripped down from Estria's lip as she bit it hard.

_Please live, Estria! For both of us..._

Estria slumped to the floor, blood still trickling from her lip mixing with tears before falling to the floor silently.

"I'll kill them... All of them..."


	5. The Coming Storm

**Author's Note: So the reason this chapter took so long was partly because I was doing a ton of research to explain how Cray's ship could possibly fly until I remembered this is a story about a guy who is rubber. So the explanation you get for Cray's ship is now "it's a mystery ship". Also was really debating hard on which path to take for this story. I have a lot of different ideas so I had to sit down and go through each one till I found one that worked best. So enjoy! Also review please, it keeps me motivated.**

* * *

**Chapter 5 – The Coming Storm**

* * *

"So let me get this straight," Roland began to say, his coat off him as clouds had covered the sun. Zoro was fast asleep while Luffy hung his head over the side of the little boat in pure boredom. The Sea King carrying the boat continued to swim, every now and then it cast fearful glances behind to the boat on its back. Sanji and Brooke looked bored too but were humoring Roland.

"You were having a good time at an island when the Tenryubito showed up, then some magician guy offed them and you ran to a different island but then got attacked by a girl and separated from the rest of your crew?" Roland asked to which Sanji nodded his head. Roland let out a long held breath and then scratched his head slightly. "But who in the world would dare so openly to fight the Tenryubito? Unless that magician planned on dying with them."

"I don't really care. The safety of Nami-swan and Robin-chan come first," Sanji stated bluntly, purposely leaving out the other crewmates to whom Brooke expressed a quiet worried sigh for. Roland kept scratching his head with a slanted frown on his face.

"But you don't even know where to start looking..." Roland muttered under his breath and tried to think of something until Luffy butted in.

"Hey, Rolex!"

"Roland-"

"We're still in the New World, right? How come it's so boring?" Roland grimaced at the clear lack of respect for his name, but addressed Luffy regardless.

"The area we're in is the Macabre Sea, though despite the name it's the calmest part of the New World, not even major storms happen here. If you were to fall overboard you'd be perfectly safe-"

"Even though there's clearly Sea Kings?" Sanji interjected with a look at the one they were riding. Roland looked at Sanji bitterly and extended a hand back towards the Sea King's head.

"These guys are just loud. Super easy to intimidate," Roland explained and then quickly ducked under his coat as the sun peeked out of the clouds for a moment. Sanji clicked his tongue in annoyance, but said nothing about it.

"So what will we do when we get to another island?" Brooke asked and Roland peeked his head back out after the sun had vanished again. Roland pursed his lips and then looked at Luffy.

"The best thing to do would try to see if we can find people, and if so, ask them if they've seen this... mystery ship you mentioned," Roland offered and Luffy picked his nose without a care. Sanji sighed and motioned for Roland to look back at him.

"It's useless to try things strategically with him. Odds are he'll just run around the island shouting for people." Roland sighed and perked up a little before looking up at the sky.

"That's odd... a storm's coming," he whispered with a worried look on his face.

* * *

The offices inside Marine Headquarters were loud and bustling as officers ran to and fro carrying things from paper stacks to weapons. Garp, however, was perfectly fine sleeping out in the stone garden without a care in the world. His sleep was interrupted sadly by the angry tone of Sengoku's voice.

"Are you seriously sleeping at a time like this?!" Sengoku snapped as he landed his fist squarely on the top of Garp's head. Garp chuckled and rubbed his head sheepishly with a small sorry.

"It's not like us hurrying with bring the dead back," Garp responded rationally before he stood up. Sengoku was about to snap again until he saw Garp grin from ear to ear. "Plus I got to get my rest if those three ladies really are back."

Sengoku's scowling frown turned to a sad sigh as he rubbed his forehead gingerly. Garp was excited as he pounded his fists together a couple of times.

"Saint Marce's family is now down to a single family member who stayed behind on their ship due to seasickness. This is a total of eleven Tenryubito killed, including the eight killed four years ago by these "ladies" as you call them," Sengoku said as he and Garp made their way down the hall to the meeting room. Garp pretended to listen to Sengoku until they reached the doors.

Sengoku pushed the doors open and quickly stepped inside followed by Garp. The doors closed behind them. In the room was a single long wooden table, at which sat many high ranking officers including Fujitora and Kizaru with Akainu at the head of the table. Sengoku and Garp sat down next to each other on the end of the table as only the chair directly across from Akainu at the other end of the table was vacant.

"You all must know why we gathered here today," Akainu stated gravely, his eyes falling onto each person at the table. Garp looked back at Akainu, a tiny twinge in Garp's clenched fists under the table. Akainu lowered his gaze for a moment to stare at the six wanted posters that lay next to each other on the table.

"Four years ago, we were given a heavy declaration of war with the deaths of eight Tenryubito. However, despite all our efforts the ones who committed this act got away and vanished from our radar. At the time we thought they were dealt with and dismissed them, but it's clear that they're back. Is this correct, Kizaru?" Akainu looked at the Admiral who was sporting a small bruise on the side of his head.

"That's correct. I got hit by a sneak attack from the one they called "Boss" when I almost had Evant Karnivel," Kizaru explained and then crossed his arms with a smirk. "Honestly he wasn't very strong, only annoying to deal with."

"That's enough. As we all know, their bounties were issued with the severe nature of their actions. A high bounty does not equal strength for half of them," Akainu said and silenced Kizaru by putting his fist on the table. "However... that only applies to that half..." The table beneath Akainu's fist suddenly set on fire as he glared at the posters before three of them burst into flames.

As the embers died down and the burnt bits of papers blew away, the remaining three posters were careful picked up by Tsuru. Tsuru looked at the worn paper with a hefty sigh, "Bloody, Natural Disaster, and Raijin... For ones so young, they so eagerly throw their lives away..."

"It doesn't matter if they're young or old, the threat they pose is real. However, they are not a threat we cannot deal with. Taking down any one of those three will be enough for us to crush them," Sengoku said sternly, his elbows resting on the table. Tsuru nodded slowly as she flipped through the posters.

"Still... this threat was born from us."

"So what, pfft?" a voice suddenly inquired, causing the room to jolt at the sudden intruder. Akainu gritted his teeth as the young intruder was sitting in the chair on the opposite side of the table that was vacant a split second ago. The intruder chuckled happily as he rocked the chair back to rest his legs on the table.

The intruder wore a pure white straitjacket with matching pants as his arms hung by the chair legs in long sleeves. His jet black shaggy hair seems to suck in all light as he flashed his equally black eyes at Akainu. Akainu merely stared back, the fire around his fist flickering slightly before being put out.

"Saint Eses, I presume?" Akainu asked, causing the boy to laugh loudly.

"Oh, how incredible, pfft! A simple peon knows my name, pfft! Is that what you garbage call "dragging a name through mud", pfft? Well whatever, my time is valuable, pfft." Saint Eses pushed his chair back so the back hit the floor but without the Saint sitting in it. Everyone jolted as the Saint was suddenly standing on the table with the three posters in hand. Tsuru flinched as she realized this and clenched her fists.

"So these are the rats biting at my adorably disgusting pets, pfft? Hmm," Saint Eses hummed lightly as he rolled back on his heels. A manic grin spread across his face before he burst out laughing. "This will be amusing to watch, pfft! Give me a good hunt, you dogs, pfft!"

With that, Saint Eses spun on his heel, showing Akainu the back of his straitjacket that had "SSS" emblazoned on it. Saint Eses then gave Sengoku a little wave before suddenly vanishing into thin air with a last laugh.

* * *

The sky was storming as the mighty galleon sailed onwards, through harsh waves and cruel winds. The crew aboard the ship clung to it for their lives as their captain barked out orders over the howling winds. A giant shadow fell over the ship, which made the crew on deck look straight up into the single glowing red eye of the giant pitch black almost blob-shaped monster that stood before them.

Screams echoed against the wind as the galleon smashed into the monstrous beast, breaking apart as if a simple cookie. The black beast seemed not to even notice what it caused as it slowly waded through the still raging sea. The monster paused for a brief second as it felt the top of its head begin to stir.

With a mighty arm, the monster lifted its three-fingered hand to the top of its head that poked out above the storm clouds. The monster extended a single finger to gently poke the person that was sleeping atop its head. The person stirred from their sleep and noticed the finger before she sat up with a big yawn.

"Sorry, Kurobebe. Did I hit you?" the girl asked while smoothing out her short orange hair she wore in pigtails. She watched with aqua-colored eyes as the finger moved up and down as a symbol of "yes" to which she nervously laughed. The girl crossed her jean-clad legs before unzipping her blue long-sleeved jersey that stopped before her waist, beneath which she wore nothing but a black bikini top.

"I just hope we run into someone strong soon or I'll die from boredom!" she whined as she flailed her arms around childishly. The giant monster lowered its arm back down and continued to slowly wade forward. The girl breathed in the thin air without any problem and grinned happily at the thought of fighting.

**WANTED  
****Dead or Alive  
****"Natural Disaster" Artemis  
****Reward: 800,000,000**

* * *

"Oh, I see an island!" Luffy called out happily. Zoro snapped awake and all of them looked over to see an island in the distance with a tall volcano. Sanji sighed in relief as Brooke started playing a happy tune. Roland looked up at the sky worried still while Luffy was jumping up and down. The Sea King growled loudly and suddenly dived down, leaving the boat in the water.

"Oi! We aren't there yet!" Luffy snapped down to the Sea King that was too busy swimming away. Zoro grabbed one of the oars and groaned lightly.

"Grab an oar, shitty chef."

"What did you say, toothpicks?!"

Luffy and Brooke laughed as Zoro and Sanji angrily started rowing again. Roland kept his eyes to the sky as they slowly made their way to the island. He glanced behind them and narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Something scared that Sea King..."

* * *

Nami slumped against the wall as she finally made it to the city. Her body trembled a little in pain and exhaustion. The sky above her grew darker by the minute and Nami could tell a strange storm was coming. Nami couldn't see any evidence of rain in the clouds before lowering her eyesight to the port in front of her.

"Have to... get back to the others..." she whispered and pinched her arm to keep herself awake. Sudden gunshots rang in the air and Nami jolted. On the port was a group of men with a rather large man standing in front of them with a pistol in his hand. Nami looked around them to see more men getting off a ship that wore a black flag. Pirates.

"This island will henceforth be property of me, Goldheart!" the large man bellowed with a hearty laugh. Nami flinched at the name and started to sweat a little.

"Oh no... not him..." Nami murmured and then as quickly as possible hid in the closest building that turned out to be a flower shop. The shopkeeper was hiding behind a large potted plant as Nami ducked behind the counter. Nami bit her lips as she recalled how she knew the pirate's name. He was one of her many victims when she was raising money to buy her village back.

Nami was amazed someone like him actually made it this far considering she knew she could beat him herself. The real danger was his crew of paid experts. Each one was a dangerous criminal, some even from Impel Down after the massive breakout two years earlier. Strange how a pirate so wealthy needed to go pillaging and such, but that didn't really matter now.

"I want all you to bring me as much treasure as you can find! As for any women... hehehe, have fun with them!" Goldheart ordered to his crew who cheered in response and ran towards the city. Nami braced herself and reached for her Clima-Tact before realizing she left it on Sunny. Whispering a quick swear, Nami peeked over the counter to get ready to run if needed.

"Ugh, where's Luffy when you need him..." she grumbled and dove her head down when a man ran by the store. Nami heard the shopkeeper begin to cry as he kept hiding. Nami was about to hush him when a blinding flash of light hit her followed by a deafening crash. Nami shielded her eyes as fast as she could, but could still feel her eyes burn from the flash. When she could see again, Nami saw the shopkeeper fainted on the floor and several screams of pain from outside.

"Captain Goldheart!" one man screamed as Nami inched her way to the window to see what happened outside. When she did, she saw Goldheart on his knees, his body covered in horrible burns as smoke rose from his body. The ground beneath him was cracked greatly and Nami saw several more men with similar conditions around him.

"Was that... lightning?" Nami wondered out loud before slowly poking her head outside to survey what happened. All of the men who had come to the island were all unconscious and covered in burns as if they'd all been hit by lightning. Her attention snapped back to Goldheart as the body loudly crackled with electricity.

"Men like you are worthless." Nami perked up at the voice as Goldheart's body fell forward. Behind him stood a tall young woman clad in a stylish black un-tucked suit and pants with a red tie hanging loosely from her collar. The woman wore sunglasses as a long scar over her left eye could been seen poking out from behind them. The woman lowered her left hand that crackled with static.

The woman's short crimson hair fluttered in the wind as she looked across the way at Nami. Nami gulped nervously as she felt the woman's eyes on her.

"D-Did you do this?" Nami asked slowly, cautiously stepping onto the road. The woman said nothing but Nami could still feel her eyes focused on her. Nami's legs felt weak again and began to shake slightly.

"... "Cat Burglar" Nami, yes?" the woman asked, her voice sending shivers down Nami's spine.

"Y-Yes?" Nami replied but the woman said nothing again. The woman snapped her fingers and Nami heard a small explosion behind her. Nami turned her head to see a man grasping at his burning hand as pieces of a flintlock lay at his feet.

"You damn monster!" the man shouted angrily before being struck through the chest by a lightning bolt. Nami stifled a shriek before slowly looking back at the woman. The woman pushed her sunglasses up again as her hand crackled with static.

"Monster... that sounds right," she said calmly, a small smirk playing at her lips. Nami gulped again and clenched her hands tightly, sweat running down her arms. Nami could immediately tell this woman was dangerous, but her body refused to move.

"You," Nami flinched as the woman addressed her again. The woman fell silent once more before extending a hand to Nami. "My name is Rekt, it's as good a name as any. I'm here to escort you to your ship on Boss's orders."

**WANTED  
****Dead or Alive  
**"**Raijin" Rekt  
****Reward: 777,000,000**

* * *

**Alright so since introductions for all the important characters are out of the way, I figured I could drop some random background in stuff like how I came up with names, reasons for the bounties, etc. We'll start with Cray Bessemer. **

**Cray's name comes from two rather famous engineers: Seymour Cray and Henry Bessemer. Seymour Cray is best known for his work on super computers in the 1900s. It wouldn't be a stretch to say computers got to the point they are now thanks to him. Henry Bessemer's era was a hundred years before Seymour Cray, and is best known for his method of manufacturing steel. Since this story's Cray works solely with steel, giving him the surname of a steel producer seemed rather fitting and his intelligence plus radical thinking is credited to Seymour Cray. Cray's bounty of 440 million is due to two reasons: his ability to dismantle the Gates of Justice and his involvement with "EX3". **

**If you want to ask for a certain character's background, feel free to ask in a review.**


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